In the fall of 2022, most Russians are planning trips within the country.
Domestic bookings account for about 77% of the number of issued tickets.
This is evidenced by the data of participants in the tourism market, which RT got acquainted with.
In the period from September to November, Moscow (with a 25.1% booking share), Sochi (14.3%) and St. Petersburg (12.1%) are the most popular.
In addition, the rating of popular destinations includes Mineralnye Vody (5.4%) and Kaliningrad (4%).
Such RT data was provided by analysts from the travel planning service OneTwoTrip.
According to the company, in comparison with the same period in 2021, among the cities from the top 10, demand increased most in Yekaterinburg - by 75%.
Flights to Mineralnye Vody and Samara have also become more in demand — by 60% in each direction.
“The share of bookings for air tickets to Ufa increased by 28%, to Sochi and Makhachkala — by 23% for each city, and to Kazan — by 20%.
At the same time, interest in Kaliningrad and Moscow increased by 8%, while interest in St. Petersburg did not change,” the organization added.
Among the popular domestic destinations, a flight to Sochi will cost more than others - about 12.5 thousand rubles in both directions, RT was told in the Aviasales service.
This is followed by Mineralnye Vody (9.7 thousand rubles), Moscow (8.5 thousand rubles), St. Petersburg (8.2 thousand rubles) and Kaliningrad (7.5 thousand rubles).
In the autumn period, Russians most often prefer three-star hotels, which account for more than a quarter of all bookings, RT explained in the Ostrovok online hotel booking service.
Somewhat less frequently travelers are interested in apartments (17%) and guest houses (12%).
The average check for trips around Russia in the fall of 2022 is 18.1 thousand rubles for five nights, the company calculated.
“In addition to the traditionally popular resorts of the country, we record an increased demand for hotels in Makhachkala.
Vladivostok made a significant increase in the top cities - this year it closes the top ten, although in 2021 it was not even in the top 20.
We expect an increase in interest in the destination against the backdrop of the start of a new stage of the tourist cashback program,” the company noted.
Earlier, the Russian government announced the decision to launch the next stage of the tourist cashback program.
It will be possible to buy discounted tours from August 25 to September 10, and go on a trip from October 1 to December 25.
At the same time, the promotion will be valid for cruises from September 1 until the end of navigation.
As part of the initiative, the state reimburses citizens no more than 20 thousand rubles for traveling around the country, but at a new stage, when traveling to the Far East, the maximum will be 40 thousand rubles.
The Far Eastern Federal District includes Buryatia, Yakutia, Trans-Baikal, Kamchatka, Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories, Amur, Magadan and Sakhalin Regions, the Jewish Autonomous Region, and the Chukotka Autonomous Region.
“The new phase will support demand for domestic travel during the fall season, which is traditionally considered to be lower compared to summer.
The database now contains more than 3 thousand accommodation facilities, all tour operators are participating in the initiative.
The program is extremely effective and allows you to encourage the consumer to explore the country more, ”Yuri Barzykin, vice president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, told RT.
To receive compensation, the trip must be paid for with a MIR bank card, which must first be registered in the loyalty program on the payment system website.
Cashback will be credited to the card automatically within five days after payment for the ticket.
The number of tours is not limited, and the duration of each trip must be at least three nights.
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© Maxim Konstantinov
As a reminder, the travel cashback program was launched for the first time in 2020.
According to Rostourism, 4.3 million people received discounts on tours during the initiative, more than 2.2 million of them in 2022.
In total, the Russians bought tickets for more than 81 billion rubles, and the state returned 15.5 billion rubles to them.
The initiative significantly increases the flow of tourists to certain regions of the country - sometimes several times.
Artyom Deev, head of the analytical department at AMarkets, spoke about this in an interview with RT.
“For example, last year the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory and the Crimea set attendance records partly thanks to the action.
The growth of the tourist flow directly affects the income of the hotel sector, and also increases the revenue of related areas - catering, entertainment and culture, logistics, retail, and generally has a positive effect on the economy of the region, ”the expert noted.
Warm welcome
At the same time, Russians have become more active in planning trips abroad.
According to market participants, the share of foreign destinations this year increased by 2.5 times and amounted to 23% against 7% in 2021.
According to OneTwoTrip, among foreign destinations in the autumn months, Russians first of all plan to visit Turkey (the share of bookings is 15.9%).
This is followed by Armenia (10.9%), Thailand (10.2%), Uzbekistan (6.3%), Kazakhstan (5.5%), UAE (4.4%) and Kyrgyzstan (4.1%).
“Thailand, Indonesia, Tajikistan, Israel and Kazakhstan stand out among the dozens of the most popular countries for which tourists have become much more likely to book flights in advance from September to November.
Demand also increased markedly for the UAE and Uzbekistan,” the service’s press service added.
The average price per night in a hotel abroad for the fall is about 5.5 thousand rubles, RT was told in the Tutu Hotels service.
More than 70% of bookings abroad are for three-four-star tourist sites.
At the same time, among the types of accommodation, hotels are the most popular - more than 85% of all orders fall on them, the company's specialists emphasized.
Today, Russians are increasingly choosing countries where they can go without any visa restrictions, experts admit.
Earlier, the Estonian authorities decided to close the border for Russians with Schengen visas issued by the republic.
Also in Latvia, they proposed to suspend the issuance of long-term visas to Russian citizens.
The EU countries are already discussing the relevant issue, but have not yet reached a consensus.
For example, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that he could hardly imagine the possibility of banning the issuance of visas to Russian citizens.
However, the Russian Foreign Ministry does not rule out a possible adoption at the EU level of a decision to stop issuing Schengen to Russians.
According to Yuri Barzykin, visa restrictions and quotas for the issuance of documents significantly reduce the flow of tourists from Russia to Europe.
Moreover, the lack of direct flights to the region makes travel to the EU more difficult and expensive for travelers, the expert noted.
“Also, due to sanctions, we cannot pay with our cards in European countries - you need to carry cash, which brings difficulties and inconvenience.
At the same time, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the CIS countries are more welcoming to Russian tourists.
In general, there are many countries where they are waiting for us and where there are all conditions for year-round recreation.
So the reorientation of the tourist flow is objective and will only increase in the future,” Barzykin concluded.